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5 Email Mistakes Every Customer Service Team Should Avoid

cropped Customer Service Error 1

In running an effective customer service department, communicating with your customers is the core activity. If that means of communication is email, then here are the five classic errors to avoid at all costs.

Not answering the question

As well as being well written, unique, and timely, it is essential that any email you send answers the query as far as possible. If you sense that it does not, perhaps because you are unable to for whatever reason, then seek a solution which you feel will appease the customer in the circumstances. If you require more information, do not be afraid to request it, but also make sure that you communicate why this information is necessary, otherwise, it will seem like a stalling tactic. You cannot make everyone happy all of the time, but as long as you try to resolve the complaint head on, and you appear to do everything in your power (including using a management response if necessary), then you will go a long way to ensure a happy resolution.

Attachments, ccs etc

Always be careful that customer service agents check the essentials of cc/bcc/forward/attachment/chain. It is essential that you build in a procedure which ensures agents take a moment to check these components before hitting the send button because, in the instance of a mistake, it very often cannot be undone. Consider who and what is said on a chain before you send an email – in some cases, it would be better to start afresh rather than just keep the chain growing. Check carefully who is in the addressee field (anyone who shouldn’t be?), and finally, if there should be an attachment, is it there? Pausing before sending is often the best approach to reducing the number of errors in these functional mistakes when sending emails.

Mistakes in your writing

The quickest way to appear unprofessional in the delivery of your emails is filling your message with spelling, punctuation, grammar and other language errors. Not only are they easily avoidable, but they also communicate perhaps the worst message that you can deliver – that you are not serious about what you are seeking to achieve. Whether your emails are being written in a native tongue or not, in this day and age of affordable technological solutions, there really is no need for it all at. It’s sloppy, and once again, deeply unprofessional. Here are some examples of what you can use to assist:

Boomessays or – These writing tools can assist in the creative process, making it easier to put together those customer service emails from the very beginning.

UKTopWriters – This editing tool can help to maximize your sentences’, and your emails’, impact.

Letsgoandlearn or StudentWritingServices  – These grammar tools can help if you are concerned that your grammar is letting down the tone or even the communication level of your email.


TopCanadianWriters – A formatting tool such as this can assist if you are not sure how to format and present your email, guiding you in how to put it together.


If you use a pool of templates which your staff can utilize, then ensure that a professional native speaker has been through them all with a fine-tooth comb to ensure everything is correct, and always consult with them for any changes that need to be made. For an individual, bespoke emails, have an in-built proofreading system adopted within your processes to avoid any mistakes.

Not adapting templates (every email is special)

Templates are great for streamlined processes, but can also create a minefield of potential mistakes, mostly in the form of failing to adapt the template. For example, it would be possible to send an original template with [insert name here] still written at the beginning, or the same at the end. This just looks lazy and gives the idea to the recipient that they are far from unique and special to your organization, and no one wants to be a mere number.

“Remember that every single email sent from your business matters. Every email is an example of your commitment and professionalism, so avoid any mistakes which bring either of those concepts into question,” recommends Jeff Sterland, a customer support manager at Big Assignments and BestBritishEssays.

Not responding in a timely fashion

If you are responding to a customer complaint, then it is essential that you connect in a timely manner, otherwise it will simply foster the opinion in the mind of the customer that you do not care about their issue, which is the worst thing you can do. If the solution requires a little time, inform the customer of this immediately. In fact, you should always have an instantly generated response to inform the customer that you take their issue very seriously and will seek to respond in a timely manner.

Generated responses are a little tricky because no one enjoys being given an automated reply, so make sure the language is polite, not too generic, and references the fact that an individual will be dealing with your issue and responding shortly. Always be timely with the response, and if it starts to take a little longer, move quickly to individual replies from individual members of the team to create a smooth dialogue with the customer, which avoids escalation.

Conclusion

The fact is, all of these mistakes can be avoided, or minimized, with a properly enacted customer service email procedure. If you take the time to set up the procedure and also monitor it, it will dramatically reduce the number of errors that are made in relation to emails, and go a long way to ensuring a smooth-running customer service department, which is an integral part to the success of any organization.

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